THE SACRED PORTION CHILDREN’S OUTREACH

A Child Caring Ministry

“And you...shall rejoice in all the good which the Lord your god has given you and your household. And you...shall say before the Lord your God. I have removed the sacred portion from my house, and have given it to...the orphan according to all thy

commandments which thou has commanded me...I have listened to the voice of the Lord my God.” Deuteronomy 26: 11, 12, & 14

This year will be our 10th anniversary for Summer of Hope, a program that seeks families for older orphans through a four week summer hosting program. The children served by Summer of Hope are children who have suffered great loss and have endured great hardship. Dire circumstances have brought them through the doors of orphanages, separated from their birth families by death, disease and poverty. Although these institutions provide sustenance and protection, the children exist without what they need most - a family. The following is an honest assessment of what we have experienced and what we have learned in ten years of seeking to bring hope to children from hard places. Continued on page 2

The Sacred Portion Children’s O u t r e a c h i s a n on - p ro f i t organization dedicated to providing for the needy children of the world who are without homes or families. Formerly known in our community as Southwood Child and Family Education Center, the organization was directly involved for 22 years in the development and operation of an early childhood program. In 1997 the organization passed the care and continuation of that program into another’s hands and the founders, Craig and Jan Druckenmiller, turned their hearts to serving a more needy population of the world’s children. With a new name and a new mission, the organization seeks to provide better environments for children living in orphanages and to ultimately move them on to brighter futures through adoption.

Our Mission Children From Hard Places By Jan Druckenmiller

Spring 2012

2

From Naivety to Reality When we started the Summer of Hope program ten years ago, we were elated to be able to find adoptive families for children waiting in orphanages, considered hard to place due to their older age or being part of a sibling group. We felt very blessed that God had entrusted us with this mission and experienced His full support in successfully raising the funds needed to bring the children each year. We were naive and idealistic during those first few years of doing the program, not anticipating that some of our Summer of Hope families would later struggle with significant issues in parenting their adopted children. Parenting children from hard places comes with a unique set of challenges that sometimes stretch and grow families beyond what they ever imagined. These are children who have been abandoned, neglected, abused and deeply wounded. They are children whose early trauma and a repeated cycle of unmet needs have affected every aspect of their growth and development. They are children for whom trust has been broken multiple times and who, consequently, have learned to t rus t on ly themselves. These children often require a different kind of parenting than adoptive parents may have used with their biological children and sometimes it takes a while to figure that out.

With the Summer of Hope program, we have come face-to-face with the challenging realities that adoptive parents encounter and have dealt with many of these same challenges in our own adoptions. We know just how difficult, and even painful, they can be.

Teens – A Special Challenge

The children who participate in Summer of Hope are 7 to 14 years old. For children adopted in their teen years, there is an incongruity in that this is a stage of life where children normally begin to seek independence while adoptive parents are trying to draw their adopted teens close. They are seeking bonding and attachment with their adopted child during a time when children that age are typically pushing away. Their “family age” with their adopted teen is the same as having a newborn come into their home and adoptive parents feel years away from being ready to have that adopted child fly the nest. This can bring a certain amount of tension to the relationship, especially when a teen’s experiential learning and developmental age is considerably less than his chronological age. It is also difficult at times to sort out if the behaviors and challenges of an adopted teen are adoption related or not, as the teenage years can be challenging for any family.

Beyond Cute and Adorable In the process of identifying children for the summer program, we have learned to look beyond cute and adorable. We recognize the spunk that we see in a bright and darling brother/sister pair to be a reflection of their ability to survive the horr i f ic circumstances that we read about in their social case history. We know that those very survival skills that kept them alive on the streets may present a potential challenge to an adoptive family. We are able to foresee that these children will only feel safe when they are in control and that it will take strong, experienced parents to go the course in helping them get to a place where they can relax, relinquish control and just be kids again. As discerning as we may try to be in screening children for the summer program, there can be unknowns that do not come to light until much later down the road in a family’s adoption journey.

A Mix of Joy and Sorrow There has been both joy and sorrow over the past decade in carrying out this mission. Countless times my heart has filled with gratitude in seeing children thriving within their adoptive families: Watching a mom walk away hand-in-hand with her adopted son after our “catching-up” conversation in the mall parking lot; hearing a father speak a blessing over his adopted son in the candlelight

of a Shabbat dinner (a mirroring of God’s love for us as H is adopted ch i ldren); observing a young man setting a course for himself in the military with pride and dedication. I have thanked God over and over for rescuing these children and placing them in homes where they have found love, security and hope for their futures. My heart has also broken for families who have struggled and whose adopted children’s past trauma has created what feels like an impenetrable wall of disconnectedness. It has broken even more when disruption of an adoption has been the only choice left to a family. The grief has been heavy in knowing that a child will experience that disruption as one more rejection and the parents will suffer feelings of failure, guilt and sorrow because they had intended their commitment to that child to be permanent.

A Difficult Dilemma Sometime ago I was reading about a Firestone tire recall that took place back in 2000. As many as 250 deaths had occurred as a result of the tires blowing out on Ford Explorers, causing the vehicle to roll over. Yet, there were hundreds of thousands of people who rode in vehicles with that same brand of tire without injury. But to the people who died as a direct result of a defect in the product, the “lethal” event far outweighed the positive experience of many others. The article contained these

words, “If the negatives are sufficiently dangerous, they cannot be offset by the positive no matter how beneficial the positives are. No matter how large the quantity of the positive, if the negative is harmful enough, it wins. If the negative reaches a level severe enough, then it has the power to disqualify the entire experience.” Even though those words were written regarding something entirely different, it caused me to question whether the c h a l l e n g e s w e h a v e experienced in our Summer of Hope adoptions “disqualify the entire experience”, even though many of the adoptions have gone well. It has pained us greatly to see families “kicking the tires of adoption” when things malfunction and it becomes more than what they signed up for. The percentage of adoption disruptions that have occurred wi thin Summer of Hope mirrors the national statistics for older child adoption of about 14%. Yet, to see even one family experience the “fatal” effects of a failed adoption feels like one too many. Do we then “recall” our mission so that families can “drive safely” without the inherent risk that comes with adoption of children from hard places? In doing so, we leave children standing by the side of the road, stranded in institutions with no hope of going anywhere. There is no easy answer to this question and we continue to humbly seek the Lord’s heart on this.

Of Faith and Hope

Research has shown that one of the key indicators of successful adoptive families is FAITH. Throughout our ten years of operating the Summer of Hope program we have sought out Christian families, as we believe that introducing children to the gospel of Christ is the only way they can truly heal from their past trauma, hurt and abandonment. These children need families who can show them God’s grace and forgiveness when they are acting out their pain in challenging behaviors; who can extend to them God’s unconditional love when they are being unlovable; who can teach them that they have value and worth in the eyes of God even though they were abandoned by their birth parents. We have needed families of faith for this program who are able to go the course and know how to rely on s o m e o n e b i g g e r t h a n themselves to provide the strength and perseverance they need in parenting children from hard places; who can hope and pray through every struggle and every victory they see in their child as he adjusts to life in their home and a new culture; who can exercise patience in building a bond of trust and attachment with a child for whom trust has been broken. A program that serves children from hard places must also be focused on HOPE. When adoptive parents feel alone, frustrated and defeated, they begin to lose hope. They may

3

come to doubt what they were so sure was a calling from God to adopt and question their decisions, their ability and whether they ever really heard God’s voice at all. Yet we must keep a grip on HOPE. Dr. Karyn Purivis, co-author of The Connected Child, states, “The past affects the future but it does not have to determine it.” We do not know the end of the story for any of these children and look to the One who delights in redeeming and restoring the brokenness of the world to make these children whole. In addition to faith-based hope, there is practical hope in therapeutic interventions that have been promulgated by research on adopted children, brain development and n e u r o c h e m i s t r y . T h e s e interventions are helping children make tremendous strides in overcoming effects of their past experiences.

Of Miracles

At a recent parent support group meeting, an adoptive couple was sharing about the difficulties they had been experiencing with their child. Speaking from a place of absolute exhaustion and discouragement, they shared that they were “praying for a miracle.” Another attendee in the group turned to the couple and said, “I think you are the miracle.” Her words echoed what had come into my heart as I listened to this couple’s story. Having found a place of love and acceptance within their family, this child has been

able to reveal her “stuff” that has been buried deep for years. As ugly as it is, a process of healing has begun that may never have happened outside the context of a family. Families who courageously step out in faith and open their hearts and homes to children from hard places do become those children’s miracles. The miracle of healing becomes a hopeful possibility not only for the adopted child but for adoptive parents who themselves may carry unresolved trauma and invisible wounds from their past. The brokenness of our adopted children often exposes our own brokenness. Dr. Karyn Purvis states, “The simple truth is that it is nearly impossible for a parent to lead a child to a place of healing if the parent does not know the way herself. Therefore, we must recognize that a critical aspect of our role in helping our children connect and heal is to travel the journey of healing ourselves.”

A Future Outlook Ten years and 120 children later, we have learned more than we could have ever imagined about children, adoption and families. Our naivety and idealism has been replaced by a realistic perception of what it means to serve children from hard places and what our responsibility is to adoptive families. We must seek more professionally based methods

4

of screening children that can reveal underlying issues so that families can be better informed in their adoption decisions. We must continue to train and educate adoptive families to be adequately prepared for parenting their adopted children and to understand the commitment and sacrifice that will require. We also feel a great need to train and educate the children being adopted before they come home. Children residing in orphanages often have a “glorified” perception of adoption and need help in understanding there will be some hard things about entering into a new family and adjusting to a different culture. It is also paramount that we continue to expand our post adoption services, providing adopt ive parent s w i th resources and the support they need for their families to be strong and healthy. This includes specific strategies for connecting with, and helping their adopted children feel safe so that “brain mentoring” can take place. Children’s brains can be neurologically affected by their past trauma and lack of early nurturing, but new brain pathways can be created once a child is no longer existing in a state of fear and insecurity. Adoptive parents need coaching in how to team up with their children to “take down the past.” Above all, we need to seek God’s guidance with this ministry and follow His heart and His will for these children from hard places.

Celebration of Hope Dinner and Auction Fundraiser

Celebrating 10 years of bringing children and families together through adoption

Friday, june 15

from 5:00 to 8:30 pm At the Commons

(Baxter and Love Lanes in Bozeman, MT)

The evening will include a catered dinner complimentary to host and adoptive families, a program celebrating adoption, and a live and silent auction to raise money for Summer of Hope and post adoption services.

Cost of dinner/auction for guests (other than host and adoptive families)

$15 for adults $10 for children ten years and under

Reservations can be made online at

www.sacredportion.org or www.summerofhope.org

Join us in celebrating adoption and honoring the families who have opened their hearts and homes

to children over the past ten years.

5

First Summer Hosting Program 2002

6

19 children from Kazakhstan came to Bozeman, Montana for six weeks of summer fun

14 children were adopted

First Summer Hosting Program 2002

7

Spring Break Work Team 2012

Spring break work teams to the Rehoboth Children’s Home have become a regular affair and this year was no exception. A group of fourteen people of all ages left from Bozeman, Montana on March 8 and returned home on March 18. Prior to traveling, the team spent several months raising funds for their trip. A pancake breakfast was held at Mountain Arts Pottery/Coffee Pot and team members also solicited individual contributions from friends and relatives. Some team members exceeded their goal and the excess was turned into a donation for the Rehoboth Children’s Home. We are always so amazed at the generosity of people who, although they may not be able to make such a trip themselves, are willing to support others so they can have that experience. Upon arrival at the Rehoboth Children’s Home, the team had a tour of the current facilities and were introduced to the staff and children. Some of the team then set to unpacking boxes and sorting out the donations of clothing, toys and other items that had been given for the Children’s Home and transported by the team as part of their luggage allowance. Team members then got to work painting the interior of the newly constructed medical clinic. Paint was rolled on the walls of the waiting room areas and exam rooms which also served as a dormitory of sorts for the team during their stay. Ground was also broken on the new Baby Home while the team was there. We were thrilled that Natalie Burgard, daughter of the late Bonnie Burgard, had joined the trip and was present for this memorable occasion. She was given the honor of digging the first shovelful to commemorate the start of construction of Bonnie’s Heart Baby Home, named in her mother’s memory. Holes were dug for the concrete posts followed by the digging of trenches for the foundation, all by hand, of course! Work was balanced with spending time with the children, the heart of the mission and the purpose of the team being there. In addition to holding babies in between coats of paint, the work team, staff and older children joined together for an evening of karaoke, a favorite pastime in the Philippines.

8

Spring Break Work Team 2012 Days of hard work were rewarded with a shopping trip to Manila and tour of the Old City, the historic part of Manila. The team also escaped the heat with a trip to Daranak Falls where they cooled off in the pools fed by the waterfalls. As always, being in another country and culture was an impactful experience for the work team. They were deeply touched by the children residing at the Rehoboth Children’s Home and had great admiration for the staff and caregivers who are so dedicated to their work. Working alongside the Filipino construction crew was an opportunity to connect with the local people, experience the culture and forge new friendships.

9

Breaking Ground

10

Taking a Break

11

It’s All About The Kids

12

Dennis & Joni Balian Chris & Judy Blackmore Kyle & Winter Blackmore Jessica Burgard Jonathan & Jessie Grider William & Donna Hawley Charles Siebenga James & June Spady Judith Tonz Edd & Jody Gryder Brian & Tera Bos Joel & Raegen Fasssbinder Perry & Esther Fishbaugh Joseph & Lisa Nabity Col. John & Judith Tonz Joseph & Heidi Trudgeon Matthew Oswell Jade & Michelle Sobek Daniel & Eva Wendell Jack & Tana Devine Downtown Antiques D. Price Derek & Nicky Swenson Walter & Linda Buroker Jeffery Kale Connie Runia Quantum Composers, Inc. Blake & Bernadette Stough Carla Waters Don Radenbaugh Joe & Amy Visser Bud & Ann Albin Bill & Gale Bacon Jean Harshbarger McCoy Family Revocable Trust Timothy & Louise Turner John & Eileen Van Dyke Bobby & Judy Andersen Norma Bryan Jamin & Tanis Casey Paul & Connie Chausse Jeanna Clark Carol Elsen Wildlife Enterprises Katharine Geer Wayne & Lee Ann Hanson

Kelly Krause John & Jane Phillips Charles & Terry Peraino Potts Drilling, Inc. Jim & Ann Yocum Albert & Camille Burrows D. & T. Coletta Betty Hill Kurt & Mary Kimm Ryan & Danita Mattick Lee & Shirlee Van Dyke Daniel & Eva Wendell Scott & Julie Anderson Robert & Kathleen Braaksma Calvin & Kathy Braaksma C.D. & Kate Forrest Richard & Muriel Hill Scot & Renee Henning Hofer Office Interiors, Inc. Microseal of Montana Brian & Kristen Priebe Rick & Carla Radovich James & Carol Tweet Jeff & Sarah Cade Chiro-Kinectics P.C. Jim & Dianne Good Ray & Julie Gosasck Gale & Mary Heide Interior Dimensions, Inc. J.M. & I. Loessberg McLeod Insurance & Financial Services Randy & Jenny Mead Raymond & Nancy Padilla Mike Delany James & Barbara Jones David & Patricia Moore William & Linda Price Kerry Williamson Bethel CRC Timothy & Lisa Dyksterhouse Mark & Teresa Kredit Joshua Lockie Craig & Valerie Deeney Nathon Harmon Katharine Sayre

Kalina Vanderhoff Brian & Peggy Swanson Kiersten Traina Scott & Kristin Bryant Nick Tomasetti Amy King Arnold Kleinsasser M. Elaine Buroker Micki Crossen Denise Carr Susan Dills Jona Verreth Jeff Buroker Kathleen Allen Rick Chiricosta Kathy Hart Michael Hart Douglas Miller Heidi Summitt Glenn & Julie Stauffer James & Mary Carlson Gil & Stacey Johnson

A Big Thanks To The Following People For Making The Spring Break Work Team Possible

13

SPCO Awarded Hague Accreditation

After an intensive nine month self study process, The Sacred Portion Children’s Outreach was awarded Hague accreditation on January 10, 2012. We passed with flying colors and are very pleased to have successfully achieved this goal. Through the Hague accreditation process, The Sacred Portion Children’s Outreach has demonstrated that it is in compliance with specific standards that address the overall functioning of the agency as well as the agency’s adoption services. Ensuring ethical practices is the underlying objective of many of the standards. As an agency, it is our desire to work with families in an open, transparent and ethical manner, fully informing them of the adoption process, the fees involved and what they can expect in terms of time frame and possible risks. The Sacred Portion Children’s Outreach has been a licensed child placing agency with the State of Montana since 2006. We have been able to do home studies for families residing in Montana as a first step in the adoption process whether it is a domestic adoption or international adoption. For an international adoption, once the home study is completed, the family must work with an international placing agency authorized to place children from the foreign country they are adopting from. The international placing agency must be Hague accredited in order to process adoptions from countries that are part of the Hague Convention. Home study agencies, such as The Sacred Portion Children’s Outreach, have been able to work in conjunction with these placing agencies without having to be Hague accredited themselves. However, some foreign countries, such as China, are now requiring that the agency providing the home study in an adoption process also be Hague accredited. We are glad that we have this under our belt as it enables us to do home studies for families adopting from any country. Families wanting more information about adoption in general or about the home study process can email The Sacred Portion Children’s Outreach at info.@sacredportion.org or phone our office at (406) 586-5773.

As a Hague accredited agency, we are now able to seek approval from the central adoption authorities of the foreign countries to function as a placing agency. This will allow us to work with families through the entire adoption process. Jan Druckenmiller presented SPCO’s application to the Intercountry Adoption Board of the Philippines (ICAB) on February 8, 2012 and we received notice on February 19 that we had been duly approved! Our placement

of children is limited to children on ICAB’s special home finding list which includes the children we bring for the Summer of Hope program and children with special needs. We have been assigned our first two cases and are very excited that these children are actually from the Rehoboth Children’s Home, the orphanage we are involved with in the Philippines! Being granted approval by ICAB as one of its foreign adoption partners in being able to process adoptions from that country is another major goal achieved and we hope to eventually gain the same status with other countries.

Intercountry Adoption Board of the Philippines

Grants Approval of SPCO as

Placing Agency

14

The Sacred Portion Children’s Outreach has been working on developing a volunteer-based adoption respite care ministry in recognition that adoptive families sometimes need a physical and emotional break from parenting their adopted children. We view respite care as an essential post-adoption support service in helping to maintain healthy families. Our goal in developing a respite care network is to have a group of respite care providers who can be called upon to provide a planned break for adoptive families and who are also available in emergency or crisis situations. Because adopted children can present with some unique challenges, it is very important that those persons providing respite care have been adequately trained. Respite providers need to be knowledgeable about the issues and behaviors that are a result of the trauma and loss that many adopted children have suffered in their past. We have offered two respite provider trainings thus far, one in October 2011 and one in April 2012. We hope to offer this training on a quarterly basis. The training has been focused on the potential respite care providers only, but we are looking at developing a joint training that would include the adoptive families planning to use respite services. The benefit of such a training would be to begin to establish relationships between the respite care providers and the adoptive families and to create a mutual understanding of the purpose of respite care, the services being provided and logistical aspects of the program.

If you are interested in being a part of the Adoption Respite Care Network as a respite care provider, please let us know of your interest.

If you are in need of or know an adoptive family that is in need of

respite care, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Anna Graham Lindeen at 570-6210 or info@MontanaRespite.org.

SPCO Seeking Respite Care Providers

In addition to in-home respite care, The Sacred Portion Children’s Outreach, i n c on ju n c t i on w i th Encompass Ministry of Journey Church, is offering a Kids’ Night Out for children ages 0 to 14. This is a special evening designed to give adoptive parents a break, while their children have a fun night out.

Our first Kids’ Night Out was held at the Commons (Journey Church) on April 27 from 6:00 to 9:00 pm. The children were served supper at the start of the evening. Chr i s t ian col lege-age students then provided fun activities for the children in different age groupings. We are hoping that Kids’ Night Out will be something adoptive parents will come to look forward to and take advantage of each quarter.

KIDS’ NIGHT OUT A Break for Parents

and Fun for Kids

15

The Gardens of Life

By Cheryl Macdonald

We moved into our current home about two years ago, and as with any previously owned home there were a few not so welcome surprises. These unwelcome surprises were easi ly overcome, however, by the beautiful landscaping, in particular the well-planned and maintained backyard, that we inherited with our new home. Surrounding our stone pool deck is a lovely haven of green boasting an array interesting flowers and trees. From the four varieties of roses to the multitude of crape myrtles, lilies and blooming hedges, color graces our little backyard retreat virtually year round. Wh i le ma in ta in ing our backyard garden requires some effort, we humbly admit that most of it existed long before we claimed it as “ours.” As the seasons change we love the new surprises that seemingly bloom to greet us - lovely things we did not plant and, therefore, are delighted to discover. There are, however, other things in our garden that we most certainly

did not plant. Take for instance the parasitic vine that continually fights for a corner with my Indian Hawthorne or the patch of dandelions in the yard that seem to be resistant to any effort to eradicate them. For a while I was convinced they actually multiplied when weed killer was applied. In order to preserve and protect the intended beauty of the garden we’ve had to call the “weed man” for professional advice about the right intervention.

The Garden of My Daughter’s Heart and Life

Our precious daughter came home in December 2006. We celebrated her 12th birthday just a few weeks later, and she has been a joy and a blessing to our family in so many ways. As her “roots” deepen in the “soil” of our family, I have come to appreciate and respect the garden of her heart and life. This garden was planted and blossoming long before I knew her name or became her mother. There are so many beautiful things in the garden of my daughter’s heart and life - lovely things I did not plant. I was not there to see her first step, her first time to run, jump or climb, yet I have discovered that she is an amazingly fast, skilled athlete, and a graceful dancer. I did not hear her first words, but she has incredible language skills and is fluent in both English and Russian. Once she was home I discovered she could

crochet, sew and cook. I have come to admire her strong work ethic, exhibited through diligence and determination - all qualities modeled for her half a world away. And I did not teach her to read, ride a bicycle or build snowmen, yet she loves to keep illustrated journals, ride bikes with no hands and build astounding things out of snow. As with my backyard garden, there are also other things in the garden of my daughter’s heart and life that I did not plant but cannot ignore. There are hard things that do not give life and instead seem intent to steal the beauty and joy from her victories. There are the fast-growing vines of fear and loss that try to choke out the trust and sense of pe rman ence t ha t has blossomed between us. And there is the stubborn root of self-reliance that impedes vulnerability and healthy attachment. Nurturing the beauty and healthy growth of my daughter’s heart and life requires constant vigilance, regular work and the humility and willingness to call upon and utilize available resources (much like the “weed man”) when needed. In this ongoing effort to help bring forth our daughter’s beauty and hold at bay the “weeds” in her life, I’ve relied upon amazing support from other adoptive families and our church, as well as books, conferences and skilled counselors. But by far the most valuable resource - for me and for her - is the Master Gardner.

16

The garden in our backyard did not come to be by chance. It was carefully designed and created for a purpose. The same is true of our daughter. Acknowledging God as the One who designed her unique and precious life has created a bridge from her past to the present and enables us to continue traveling this journey toward a hope-filled future. He knows better than anyone, including my daughter herself, what things are buried deep in the garden of her heart, and He desires to see those things that He planted burst into life and beautiful color. As the seasons of life change I know there will be many more surprises that will blossom forth from my daughter’s heart and life. Some will spring forth with life and beauty; others will seek an unsuspecting moment to yield patches of doubt and insecurity. Trusting His skill and purpose gives me courage and hope as I watch my daughter’s heart and life bloom and stand amazed at His Master Plan. This article was taken from Created to Connect: A Christian’s Guide to The Connected Child, created by Dr. Karyn Purvis with Michael & Amy Monroe.

The Sacred Portion Children’s Outreach has been awarded a grant from the Gilhousen Family Foundation for post adoption services. The proposal submitted to the foundation contained six key components for a comprehensive model of post adoption support. These include 1) monthly support groups 2) respite care 3) continuing education and training 4) family building activities 5) financial assistance for therapeutic services 6) resources and agency support. The Sacred Portion Children’s Outreach will be partnering with Encompass Ministry of Journey Church in Bozeman for the delivery of some of these services. With funding in place, what can families look forward to in the near future? First of all, SPCO and Encompass will be developing a third support group in addition to the EQUIP and CONNECT groups that are currently meeting on a monthly basis. This new group will be designed to help adopted and biological children of the same family learn to attach as brothers and sisters, as well as understand cultural, language and developmental differences. A specifically designed curriculum of fun activities will give siblings opportunities to interact in empathetic and healthy ways. We will continue to develop our respite care program, offering trainings throughout the year for potential respite care providers and the adoptive families who would be using the services. Our first Kids’ Night Out was a smashing success. This break for adoptive parents will continue to be offered on a quarterly basis. Workshops on issues relevant to adoptive families will become a regular offering and partial scholarships will be available for families that want to access on-line trainings as a means of continuing education. Family building activities such as potlucks, sledding parties, and summer barbeques will happen throughout the year. These gatherings will not only be fun, but will allow families to connect and get outside their regular lives and schedules, meet new adoptive friends, and maintain relationships with older friends, all of which help develop stronger networks for support. Our Celebration of Hope Dinner and Auction Fundraiser on June 15 will be one of these opportunities. Although our grant request contained a component for financial assistance for therapeutic services, it is not enough to make a significant impact and we will need to continue to look for a source of sizable funding for this. You may be wondering how all of this going to happen? The exciting news is that our grant proposal included funding for a part time Post Adoption Support Services Coordinator and we will be creating a new staff position within The Sacred Portion Children’s Outreach. We greatly thank the Gilhousen Family Foundation for providing the funding to allow us to implement some promising practices that can have a significant impact on helping adoptive families to be functional and healthy.

SPCO Awarded Grant For Post Adoption Services

17

Doing an extended stay in the Philippines is something that we have dreamed of for a long time and that dream will become a reality for our family in 2012. The time is quickly approaching when we will transport ourselves and four of our children to the Philippines for a ten-month stay. The purpose of our going is to oversee the construction of Bonnie’s Heart Baby Home being built in memory of Bonnie Burgard of Bozeman, MT. This project that had been in the dream stage since Bonnies’ passing in June 2006 was finally set in motion when Bonnie’s family members initiated a capital campaign on February 14, 2011. Within one year’s time, they raised over $100,000 and ground was broken on the Baby Home in March of this year. Making the commitment to transport our family to the other side of the world feels daunting and overwhelming, but we believe this is where we need to be. We will be heading off to the Philippines in mid-July as our girls need to start school the beginning of August. They will be attending Faith Academy, a missionary school located an hour plus drive from the Rehoboth Children’s Home. Our children will have a long commute every day qnd have to be on the road by 5:30 am as school starts at 7:10. Hopefully, they will be able to make good use of the time either by sleeping or doing homework! We are praying that they will adjust to being in a different school environment and that new friendships will be forthcoming. We are blessed to be the first occupants of the Missionary House that is being built on the Rehoboth expansion property to accommodate missionary families and medical mission teams that come to serve. We are also fortunate to have a source of income to support us during the time that we are in the Philippines. Unlike some people who go overseas to do missionary work, we do not need to raise support for our living expenses. However, the cost of getting our family of six to the Philippines is more than we can cover. Thus, we are inviting people to contribute to our airfare or donate miles to our Skymiles accounts. Donations are tax-deductible and can be made: 1) By check payable to The Sacred Portion Children’s Outreach and mailed to 7104 Bristol Lane, Bozeman, MT 59715. Please do not write in the memo on the check (IRS rules) but rather enclose a note preferencing your donation for the Druckenmiller family mission trip. 2) Donate online at www.sacredportion.org. Select Druckenmiller Family Mission Trip in the side bar which will take you to a Donate button. If you have Skymiles to share, you can call us at (406) 586-5773 for our account numbers. There have been many details to work out to make this trip possible. A huge answer to prayer came with our son and wife committing to living in our house during the time we are gone and overseeing Craig’s property management business as well as his snow removal contracts. There is much that I will still be able to do long distance in running The Sacred Portion Children’s Outreach, but we are blessed that our graduating student intern has committed to working for SPCO 20 hours per week. Her hours, combined with those of our administrative assistant, will give adequate coverage for the SPCO office and phone. We still have a lot of smaller details to work out but are thankful that these major hurdles have been put in place. We know that there will be much about our time in the Philippines that will be hard and challenging for our family. But we are also anticipating that it will be an experience that creates lasting memories and serves to strengthen our faith and our characters. Please pray along with us that God will provide protection and greatly bless this family adventure in service to Him.

A Family Adventure

18

General

Allied Electrical Services Carla Waters Nikki Robbins Barbara O’Neill William & Melissa Wagner John Christiansen Evangelical Free Church Gordon & Gay Gallup John & Harriet Tamminga Coleman Charitable Trust Fidelity Charitable Gift Fund Otten Foundation Ken & Corrine Zichovich William & Kathy Webster Loren & Heather Cantrell Corny & Sharilee Kroon John & Kristine Corcoran Rehability, P.C. Joel & Claudia Shouse Dan & Beverly Triemstra Bruce & John Meyer Randy & Gail Heaton Eric & Belinda Jacobsen Brad & Terri Murphy Daniel & Alice Nice Duncan & Susan Hill Claire Kimm Steve & Christie Schlumbohm Blue Ribbon Nets Gianforte Family Charitable Trust Terri Murphy Arthur & Joy Shellenberg Phillip Coker Evangelical Free Church Calvary Chapel

Rehoboth Expansion

Martin Eskijian Mark & Becky Dockter Shawn & Maria Bultsma Dental Clinic: Allison Harper, DMD Mike Lee, DDS Kevin Pearson, DDS Fred Sayre, DMD & Carolyn Casey Sayre, DDS & Carol Sue Brian Kruse, DMD & Carol

OUR CONTRIBUTORS Gifts Received from 11/15/2011– 5/5/2012

Bonnie’s Heart Baby Home

Nancy Hall Betty Hill Edwin & Diane Wolff Michael Burgard Beverly Zbyrowski Margery Hill Susan & Vernon Tourtelotte Robert & Kathleen Braaksma Judith Worley Marc & Sherrie Pierce Mary MacFarlane Robin Zetzer & Steven Fladhammer Josh & Janna Bosker Richard & Muriel Hill Mary Jean Gaskill Frederick & Barbara Kenney Thomas & Glory Sullivan Phyllis Wolff David & Evelyn Dickey Randy & Julie McMillian Eric Saybert’s Life Group Beatrice Tourtelotte Sara Burton Matt & Kathy Black Michael & Kathy Danielson Robert & Cheryl Darling Sally Burton Neff Wade & Julie Louthan Arthur Darken

Child Sponsorship

David & Loann Aardema Jerry & Shawn Cole Rick & Janet Lee Roger & Mary Ann Van Dyken Larry & Deborah Schulz Joseph & Alyssa Nardinger Calvin & Kathy Braaksma Clayton & Gail Wells Carol Kleveland E. Free Sunday School classes Tony & Rhondda Dunne Josh & Brit McKenzie Stan & Linda Tenney Andrew & Michelle Warren Norman & Maria Shaw David & Mary Siewert Steve & Kris Van Dyken Ron & Donna Nauta Jim & Helen Zarifirou Phil & Cindy Bruckner Ian & Gill Sayers Freddie Mac Foundation Employee Giving Brent & Jessica Powell Gail Hendrickson Carmen Van Middendorp Donald & Vicki McBride James & Deila Harvey Robert & Linda Keene

Adoption Assistance

Robert Hendricks Michael & Kimberli Herring Diane Jennett David & Janette Rutledge Barry family Stephen & Laura Barry Patricia Cline Jon & Leann Koon Gary & Carol McFarland Kenneth & Susan Mottram Andrew & Mindolyn Kohn Jack & Bonnie Millar Gabor & Susan Benda Charles & Karen White Journey Church Joseph & Dee Anne Egan

19

Rehoboth General

Joel & Carolyn Dykstra Freddi Mac Foundation Asuncion & Gabriel Boratgis Timothy Hayes Tony & Rhondda Dunne Lori Martendale Paul & Shari Reasoner National Christian Foundation William & Melissa Wagner Dawn Pauls Timothy & Jennifer Crotty Brent & Jessica Powell Tim & Gina Leonhardt Sadee Druckenmiller Robert Thoburn Bruce & Bev Brander Jeff Van Dyken Javan & Kendra Druckenmiller Quantum Composers, Inc. Shawn & Maria Bultsma C.R. Bard Foundation

The Sacred Portion Children’s Outreach 7104 Bristol Lane Bozeman, MT 59715 (406) 586-5773

SPCO Board of Directors

Craig Druckenmiller, Jan Druckenmiller, Sandi Van Middendorp, Ramona Linabary, Jenny Mead, Tim Hart, Cal Braaksma, Linda Keene,

Heather Cantrell, Char Seger

Inside This Issue:

CHILDREN FROM HARD PLACES

CELEBRATION OF HOPE

DINNER & AUCTION FUNDRAISER

FIRST SUMMER HOSTING

PROGRAM

SPRING BREAK WORK TEAM 2012

HAGUE ACCREDITATION

ADOPTION RESPITE CARE

THE GARDEN OF MY

DAUGHTER’S LIFE

POST ADOPTION SERVICES GRANT AWARD

A FAMILY ADVENTURE

NONPROFIT ORG. U.S. POSTAGE

PAID BOZEMAN MT

PERMIT NO. 160